Mental health matters

Published time: 21 Mar, 2008 21:00 Edited time: 22 Mar, 2008 00:00

Is oppressive psychiatry back in Russia? The media claims that Soviet methods are alive and that supporters of the political opposition in Russia are at risk. In one case, Larisa Arap alleges she was put in a secure unit against her will. But was she really victimized by the authorities? And was she really connected to the opposition? What really happens behind closed doors at Russia’s psychiatric units? Aleksandr Luchaniniov discovers how Russian doctors are working to dispel the myths about the system in the XL Report.